Injured rookie misses opener of summer league

But that's because Jay Williams spent the Bulls' summer-league opener in street clothes, signing autograph after autograph for young fans instead of making his professional debut.

The hip flexor and mildly strained groin that Williams sustained in practice Wednesday night bothered him enough that the Bulls' first-round draft pick had to skip Friday night's Rocky Mountain Revue opener, an 86-66 victory over Dallas at Salt Lake Community College.

Then again, that depended on to whom you spoke.

"I'm fine," Williams said.

His pacing and constant cheerleading as he watched his teammates play seemed to support that fact.

If that didn't, his rebounding during pregame warmups certainly did.

But the Bulls chose caution over curiosity, making sure Williams is healed before unveiling the latest addition to a growing stockpile of young talent.

"It was like putting a noose around him," said general manager Jerry Krause, who told Williams he would be sitting out. "He kept coming up to me on the airplane saying, `I can play, I can play.' I thought he would call me in my hotel room [Friday] morning and keep begging.

"If this was during the season, we might take some chances. But we want to make sure he's completely healthy."

Williams practiced Saturday and said he will play Sunday when the Bulls face Phoenix.

That the Bulls are giving heavy minutes to three players who combined to start 109 games last season--Hassell, Curry and Chandler--is a sign of what this summer league represents.

The Bulls aren't merely playing undrafted free agents. They're preparing a good portion of their regular-season rotation for next season.

"This is serious stuff," Myers said. "I want to see Jamal push the ball up the floor. I want to see Tyson and Eddy focus under duress. Too many times last season, those guys got into foul trouble four to six minutes into the game because they were fatigued."

Curry didn't disappoint early. All eight of his first-quarter points came on crowd-pleasing dunks, including an alley-oop from Crawford that brought a standing ovation and a Dallas timeout.

Curry led the Bulls with 21 points in 22 minutes. He shot 8-for-15 but had only three rebounds. Chandler led all players with 13 rebounds.

"Coming in here with basically three or four starters, we have the attitude that we should win every game," Curry said.

Crawford added 13 points and seven assists while playing 34 minutes. Crawford did commit seven turnovers. But Myers praised the third-year guard, who flew to Seattle on Saturday for his sister's wedding but will return Sunday.

"I know I'm going to get defense from Trenton, but I thought Jamal was really active defensively," Myers said. "He got up on guys. He talked to guys. He did a really nice job."

Second-round draft pick Lonny Baxter contributed eight points and eight rebounds in 12 minutes, hitting all four of his shots.

Fellow second-round pick Roger Mason Jr., like Williams, missed a chance to make his debut after mildly spraining his right shoulder in Friday's morning practice. He didn't practice Saturday and is questionable for Sunday.

None of Dallas' players is expected to make the regular-season roster. Former King High School star Thomas Hamilton, attempting yet another NBA comeback, contributed six rebounds in 24 minutes.

Layups: In other action, Qyntel Woods scored 15 points in his professional debut as Portland lost to Utah 80-75. Former Bull Scott Burrell, an eight-year veteran attempting to make a comeback after being out of the league last year, scored two points for Portland. ... Krause said the Bulls never made Scott Williams a formal contract offer. The veteran free-agent forward signed with Phoenix on Friday. . . . The Bulls still hope to work out a sign-and-trade deal for free-agent point guard Travis Best, whose latest suitor is Milwaukee. The Bucks' Darvin Ham and Greg Foster would interest the Bulls.